Preparing a Market Strategy for a Global EdTech Platform's U.S. Expansion

Role: Communications Strategist

Client: Preply, Kyev, Ukraine 
Focus: Business Strategy and Brand Positioning

Timeline: 2017-2018

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Background 

The client, an online tutoring platform, had already achieved success in several markets and was preparing to expand into the United States. The company offered language and subject tutoring via a network of independent tutors, leveraging technology to connect learners and educators. While the product was robust, the brand messaging, positioning, and service descriptions were tailored for European audiences. Their main objective was to make subtle changes to their messaging and brand to gain traction in the already competitive U.S. online tutoring market.

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Objectives 

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• Adapt the company's value proposition for the U.S. market without losing the brand’s global identity.

• Translate product and service messaging to resonate with U.S. cultural norms and expectations around education and tutoring.

• Identify market entry strategies to position the platform as credible and trustworthy in a competitive EdTech ecosystem.

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Strategy

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Phase 1: Market & Cultural Research

• Conducted qualitative interviews with U.S.-based tutors, students, and parents of students to understand perceptions of online tutoring (e.g., how trust is established).

• Analyzed competitor positioning, messaging, and user experience in U.S. EdTech markets.

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Phase 2: Messaging & Brand Translation

• Developed messaging focused on trust, tutor quality, and accountability for the U.S. market. 

• Refined the company's service descriptions, website copy, and marketing materials to align with U.S. language and expectations.

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Phase 3: Stakeholder Engagement & Feedback Loops

• Iteratively tested messaging and platform interfaces with target users to optimize clarity and cultural relevance.

 

Outcomes and Impact

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• Client launched its U.S. platform with messaging tailored to local audiences, achieving early adoption among tutors, students, and parents.

• Improved brand perception in the U.S. market, positioning the platform as both innovative and credible.

• Established a repeatable process for global-to-local translation of the startup's brand, messaging, and platform experience to help launch in other global markets.

• The company (valued at just $4 million in 2018 and more than $500 million by 2024) now generates roughly one-third of its revenue from the U.S. market and is considered a major player in the U.S. online tutoring market.

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